Living La Vida Global: The Expansion of Highly Qualified Migration to Spain and Its Socio‐Spatial Patterns

ABSTRACT High‐income countries shape their migration policies to attract highly qualified immigrants (HQI), aiming to boost human capital and economic growth. HQI often settle in large cities, raising two challenges for urban social sustainability. First, immigrants frequently face residential segregation, hindering social integration. Second, local communities in cities receiving wealthier migrants may experience displacement due to lifestyle migration and transnational gentrification. However, in countries with recent migration history, the residential distribution of HQI in urban areas remains largely unknown. This study analyses the residential distribution of HQI in Spain's largest urban areas, where HQI have rapidly increased from nearly 170,000 in 2001 to over 925,000 in 2021. Using 2021 Census data, we apply Multilevel Latent Class Analysis to categorize immigrants by migration status, labour performance and household characteristics. We identify seven distinct groups and demonstrate the existence of a socioeconomic stratification regarding their residential distribution. Unemployed or overqualified HQIs from low‐ and middle‐income regions cluster in lower‐income peripheral areas, while those employed in high‐skilled jobs originating in Europe concentrate in central cities.